‘Fable’ by Gigi Perez - Lyrics & Meaning

October 25, 2024 3:56 pm GMT

Gigi Perez - ‘Fable’

Release Date: October 25th, 2024

Songwriter: Gigi Perez

Producer: Gigi Perez

The Background:

A few weeks after Gigi Perez's yearning July release, ‘Sailor Song’, blossomed into a viral smash, the fast-emerging alt-folk singer-songwriter announced her brand new single, ‘Fable’.

Perez is yet to do a deep dive into the story behind the evocative offering, but she took to socials in the lead-up to ‘Fable’s release to touch on how the title was inspired by the last song her late sister, Celene, sang before she passed away in 2020. The track finds Perez delving into themes surrounding religion, love and the afterlife, with a voice recording - seemingly from Celene - being interspersed with the outro.

The Sound:

Sonically, ‘Fable’ feels cut from the same cloth as ‘Sailor Song’, with Gigi Perez's distinctive vocals floating across an atmospheric and slightly melancholic acoustic guitar riff. Perez ups the ante for the chorus, with the instrumental taking on a considerably more dramatic, stormier feel, mirroring the angst of the lyrics. The familial and deeply personal ambience of ‘Fable’ is accentuated by the fact that the track features backing vocals from her younger sister, Bella, as well as a voice recording from someone who introduces themselves as ‘Celi’. This is presumed to be a nickname for Perez's late older sister, Celene.

The Meaning:

“Fable and truth

Direct me to someone who gives me the juice and new rules

Someone to tell me we're not born to be mules in this

Everything, it contradicts”

‘Fable’ appears to pivot around a narrator who is struggling to find peace as they navigate grief, as they question whether what they're looking for can be found in myths or ‘fables’. There's an undercurrent of spiritually-minded imagery in ‘Fable’, which implies the protagonist is struggling to view the stories in a particular religion, perhaps Christianity, as being truthful, rather than mere fables and myths.

The narrator desires to break out of the ‘system’ she finds herself in, portraying everyone as being ‘mules’ or pawns being used in society. The reference to contradictions could again be used to underline her tussle with the truthfulness of religious teachings.

“Hedges of prayer

'Cause you believe, doesn't mean that it's there, it's so rare

It's so rare that somebody'd look out for you (Look out for you, look out for you)

Thoughts and prayers was all they'd do (All they'd do, they'd do, they'd do, they'd do)”

Here, we get more religious language, as the protagonist appears to grow jaded with well-wishers’ proclamations that they're sending ‘prayers’ to someone who is experiencing grief. She highlights that just because someone might vehemently believe in a particular set of rules or principles, it doesn't mean there's actual truth in them.

“When I lifted her urn

Divinity says, "Destiny can't be earned or returned"

I feel when I question, my skin starts to burn

Why does my skin start to burn?”

The urn here could be a reference to the ashes of the loved one that's passed away in this narrative, with the phrase “Destiny can't be earned or returned” seemingly conveying the idea that our future is going to unfurl before us, regardless of what we do about it. This adds to the powerlessness the protagonist feels as she processes her emotions. She implies there is a feeling of guilt and discomfort for doubting and questioning religious ideals, rather than going along in blind faith.

“Ah-ah, capital loss

Love was the law and religion was taught, I'm not bought

Feel when we argue, our skin starts to rot

Our skin starts to rot”

The narrator champions the feeling of love as being more impactful and influential than anything intellectual that's ‘taught’. She extends the imagery surrounding her skin feeling uncomfortable, except here, she describes it as rotting, rather than burning. It continues the sense that asking these probing questions goes against the way some depict religious belief, and she worries that she may be punished.

“So share me your plan

If I implore you, could I be your lamb? Understand

I look for the truth in the back of your hand, and I

Look into the open sky”

Much of ‘Fable’ appears to be directed towards a higher being, possibly God, and in this verse, the protagonist directly asks for a greater understanding of the predestined plan of her life. Despite expressing her concerns and trepidation about religion, she utilises a common Christian phrase about being a lamb. The lamb could symbolise purity and safety, or alternatively, it could represent a sacrifice, with Christ being referred to as the ‘Lamb of God’ when he died on the cross.

“Stars blink like my sister's eyes (Hey, princess, it's Celi, I'm just calling you to wish you luck on your performance at the café)

Stars blink like my sister's eyes (Um, I love you, you're gonna kill it, bye, baby)

Stars blink like her eyes

Like her eyes

I dream of eternal life

I dream of eternal life”

Although the lyrics are kept relatively enigmatic for the majority of ‘Fable’, the outro finds Gigi Perez getting more specific and personal, as she weaves in a voice recording from what appears to be her late sister, Celene, who passed away in 2020. Endearingly, in the voice-note, she wishes Gigi Perez the best of luck with her forthcoming performance, with Perez then crooning wistfully about how she sees something divine and heavenly when she looks into her sister's eyes. The track seems to conclude with the Perez yearning for her sister to be alive and well in the afterlife with the line “I dream of eternal life”, so that she can see her again.

What has Gigi Perez said about ‘Fable’?

When announcing the release date for ‘Fable’, Gigi Perez touched on the heartbreaking meaning behind the track, “My next song, "Fable" out Friday 10/25...I named it after the last song my older sister sang on a stage...Can't wait for you to hear it”.

In a TikTok shared in tandem with the song's arrival on October 25th, Gigi Perez thanked her little sister, Bella, for singing background vocals on ‘Fable’, movingly reflecting, “Thank you for being a beautiful singer and being the only one that understands the specificity down to the intangible, pain of losing our older sister”.